The Palau-flagged vessel disabled by the US military in the Gulf of Oman dismissed nearly 60 verbal warnings and other shows of force before its , a report on Sunday stated.
According to an AP report citing a US official, the tanker M/T Settebello’s crew ignored at least eight shows of force by US military aircraft, which included fired flares and flyovers.
Two additional final warnings were also issued to the vessel that had 24 Indian crew members, before the American forces fired at the ship that was travelling off the Oman coast on Wednesday.
The US Central Command had said that the oil tanker tried to “violate” the blockade put up by America outside the Strait of Hormuz.
An American aircraft fired “precision munitions” at the engine room of the Palau-flagged M/T Settebello vessel, the US military said earlier in the week, and the incident in the Gulf of Oman led to the killing of three Indian sailors, the Ministry of External Affairs confirmed.
Spoke to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio this evening. I reiterated India’s strong protest at the attacks by the US Navy in the Gulf that killed three Indian mariners. Such lethal actions against commercial shipping are not justified.
— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar)
The vessel with two dozen Indian crew members aboard was described as a shadow fleet ship by the US official, who said that the tanker was being utilised in order to illegally transfer Iranian oil and evade sanctions, AP reported.
The vessel was seen attempting to break the US military’s blockade of Iranian ports several times as American forces communicated with the vessel several times in the past two weeks before being fired upon and getting disabled, the official told AP.
Detailing the warning issued prior to attack, the US Central Command in a statement said 15 minutes were given to the crew of M/T Settebello vessel to exit the engine room before the shots were fired, disabling the tanker.
“After being in place for more than 60 days, it should be clear by now that US forces will strictly enforce the blockade,” the Central Command’s statement added.
